Born in the Viet Yen District, north of HanoI, in 1942, The son of a World War I fighter p'ilot who

The son of a World War I fighter p'ilot who 'A A

Nguyen Van Coc was the son of a Viet Minh resistance ••• I. II , ,
leader who was assassinated by the occupying F.rencti
forces. HIs mother had to spirit her son away to Thai
Nguyen, near to Chu ai~ base, where the
fascinated with aircraft. While in his senim year at Ngo Si
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Lien school in Bac Giang, Van Coc took basic r A , •

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tests fm the air force and was accepted i ... ...... .
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120 other trainees were subseguent y sent to Russia
four years, training at Batajsk and Krasnodov. Only ., , . ,
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were eventually selected for MiG-1~ training, and just
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seven students, including Van Coc, managed to attain the
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Returning to Noi Bal (Phuc Yen] "'
921st ER, he was soon sent back to the USSR with 13 '. I •
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other flilots to undertake conversion traini
MiG-2L Rejoining his u it (by now equiflfled with MiG-21s]
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at Noi Bai in June 1966, Van Coc passed on his knowledge
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to a follow-on batch of pilots who were trained in North

Vietnam uSing MIG-1SUTls because there were n
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then d'vlng fm safety. ., .,
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Van Coc began oflerationai flying in December 1966,
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success on Aflril 30, 1967. when flying as wingman to future
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engagement, an HOSE from the 3SSth TEW liad been sliot
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of llt Wallace Wiggin

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records, Including a Fire . .. ... .. .... ..
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flosition. It yielded an element of surflrise in that tlie

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